Australia 1926-S sovereign
This specimen was lot 376 in Sincona sale 75 (Zürich, May 2022), where it sold for 19,000 CHF (about US$23,062 including buyer's fees). The catalog description[1] noted, "Grossbritannien | Königreich. George V. 1910-1936. Sovereign 1926 S, Sydney. Bare head. Sehr seltener Jahrgang. NGC MS63+" This type was struck 1911-28 at the Sydney, Melbourne and Perth mints. The Perth mint was used mostly to strike sovereigns. It issued other denominations only sporadically before it closed in 1964. The Australian sovereign is identical to the ordinary British sovereign in every respect except for the addition of a mintmark, which will be found buried in the rock below the dragon on the reverse. As British issues effectively ceased after 1916, Australian sovereigns of George V are quite a bit more common. A slightly modified type (KM 32) was struck 1929 until 1931, when gold coinage ceased altogether.
Recorded mintage: 1,030,999, a very rare date.
Specification: 7.98 g, 0.917 fine gold, 0.2355 troy oz AGW, this specimen 7.99 g.
Catalog reference: KM 29, S-4003, Fr-38.
- Friedberg, Arthur L. and Ira S. Friedberg, Gold Coins of the World, From Ancient Times to the Present, 9th ed., Clifton, NJ: Coin and Currency Institute, 2017.
- McDonald, Greg, The Pocket Guide to Australian Coins and Banknotes, 23rd ed., Lavington, Australia, 2017.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1901-2000, 47th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- Pitt, Michael, Renniks Australian Coin and Banknote Values, 32nd Edition, Matraville, New South Wales, Australia: Renniks Publications, 2023.
- Skingley, Philip, ed., Standard Catalogue of British Coins: Coins of England & the United Kingdom, 46th edition, London: Spink & Son, 2011.
- [1]Richter, Jürg, SINCONA Auction 75, SINCONA British Collection - Part 2, Zürich: SINCONA AG, 2022..
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